Tahir Duckett on the Killing of Sonya Massey
And - Toni Jackson on alternative response for domestic violence
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HEADLINES
The Police Killing of Sonya Massey Argues for Alternatives to Reform, July 27, 2024
NY Times Guest Column by Tahir Duckett, member of the AMSA Advisory Council
On July 6, Sonya Massey called 911 to report an intruder. After Sean Grayson, a sheriff’s deputy, and another officer found no intruder outside of her home in Sangamon County, Ill., they knocked on her door. The situation escalated after Ms. Massey went to turn off her stove. Within seconds Mr. Grayson drew his gun and shot her in the head.
The death of George Floyd in 2020 drew public outrage and calls for a wide variety of police reforms. There still a lot we don’t know about the Massey situation, including if she was experiencing mental distress. But the killing of Ms. Massey is a cold reminder of how little has changed in the years since.
It’s true that there have been piecemeal reforms at the state and local level. But at the federal level, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act was unable to get past partisan gridlock in the Senate — and, in any case, many experts agree that the act would not do enough to reduce rates of police violence in the United States.
San Francisco's police-free response program shows reason for cautious optimism, July 22, 2024
Two of San Francisco's non-police alternative response programs have led to fewer police calls and resulted in a large number of residents accepting harm-reduction supplies like naloxone and fentanyl test strips, according to a recent report.
Why it matters: Proponents of such programs have argued that they could reduce harmful and sometimes violent interactions with law enforcement, as well as free up 911 dispatchers and police — two departments that are facing staffing shortages.
Driving the news: The report, released this month by the New York University School of Law's Policing Project, analyzed the effectiveness of San Francisco's Street Crisis Response Team (SCRT) — designed to respond to people experiencing mental health crises — and the Street Overdose Response Team (SORT), for residents experiencing drug overdoses.
The performance of both teams offers "reason for cautious optimism," according to the report.
By the numbers: From June 2022 through August 2023, SCRT responded to 12,581 calls — about 29 per day — within 16 minutes, on average, according to the Policing Project.
Between August 2021 and May 2023, SORT responded to more than 3,000 calls — the majority of which involved an overdose.
In the majority of SCRT's encounters, the police were never called for backup, while a significant portion (1,391) of SORT's clients accepted harm-reduction supplies, according to the report.
BIRMINGHAM - Celebrating Success: Graduation of the 3rd Crisis Response & Intervention Training Class, July 22, 2024
The Birmingham VA Health Care System's Veterans Response Team proudly celebrated the graduation of its third Crisis Response and Intervention Training (CRIT) class on July 19, at the Birmingham VA East Clinic.
This significant milestone marks the successful completion of training for 24 dedicated members, bringing the total number of graduates to 64 since the program's inception.
The week-long CRIT program is a collaborative initiative designed to equip first responders and community partners with essential tools and knowledge to address mental and behavioral health crises among Veterans effectively. The program underscores the vital need for improved cooperation between first responders and Veterans Affairs resources, aiming to fortify partnerships and enhance crisis interventions.
MINNEAPOLIS - Crisis response team handles thousands of calls once routed to police, July 25 2024
"It’s really powerful to be able to listen to what the person is going through because what I see as a crisis is completely different from what they’re going through," said Canopy Roots behavior crisis responder Elias Rosas-Lee.
During one call, the team aided a woman in distress who had not eaten nor taken her medication in a few days. The team helped stabilize the woman, who had a known mental health history, and contacted her social worker.
"We can’t save anybody, they have to save themselves," said behavioral crisis responder David Ruth. "But what we could do is give them the proper resources and hope."
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